Apparatus and methods for vehicle structural or semi-structural component assembly enabling tunable deceleration characteristics

Abstract

A vehicle structural or semi-structural component assembly or crash sensor assembly includes a body, wherein a first portion of the body comprises a polymer composite material and a sensor mount portion of the body is connected to the first portion; and a sensor directly attached to the sensor mount portion. The sensor mount portion comprises a polymer composite material and a flexible reinforcement material over-molded within the polymer composite material. A method for enabling tunable deceleration characteristics in a vehicle structural or semi-structural component assembly includes forming a structural or semi-structural component for a vehicle from a polymer composite material; over-molding a flexible reinforcement material within the polymer composite material at one or more locations along the component; and attaching a sensor directly to at least one of the one or more locations.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A vehicle bolster having a body, the body comprising:
 a first portion comprising a first member, a second member opposed from the first member, a third member positioned between and at one end of the first and second members, a fourth member opposed from the third member and positioned between and at an end of the first and second members opposite the third member, the first portion of the body fabricated from a polymer composite material, and 
 a sensor mount portion connected to the first member and the third member of the bolster, the sensor mount portion comprising a polymer composite material and a flexible reinforcement material over-molded onto the polymer composite material, and a sensor directly attached to the sensor mount portion. 
 
     
     
       2. The bolster of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor mount portion does not include a monolithic metal plate. 
     
     
       3. The bolster of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor mount portion has a Maximum G-Load spread of less than or equal to about 100 G's. 
     
     
       4. The bolster of  claim 3 , wherein the mount comprises a Maximum G-Load spread from about 1 G to about 100 G's. 
     
     
       5. The bolster of  claim 4 , wherein the mount comprises a Maximum G-Load spread from about 40 G's to about 100 G's. 
     
     
       6. The bolster of  claim 5 , wherein the mount comprises a Maximum G-Load spread from about 60 G's to about 100 G's. 
     
     
       7. The bolster of  claim 1 , wherein the flexible reinforcement material is a material selected from the group consisting of a woven, continuous glass fiber substrate; a continuous glass fiber within a polypropylene substrate; a woven, comingled glass and polypropylene fabric; continuous high-strength steel strands; a woven, continuous polypropylene and fiberglass substrate; and any combination thereof. 
     
     
       8. The bolster of  claim 1 , wherein the flexible reinforcement material comprises a plurality of individual, unidirectional continuous high-strength strands. 
     
     
       9. The bolster of  claim 1 , wherein the flexible reinforcement material comprises a flexible substrate and continuous high-strength steel strands attached to the flexible substrate. 
     
     
       10. The bolster of  claim 1 , wherein the flexible reinforcement material comprises a matrix of continuous high-strength steel strands interconnected with each other. 
     
     
       11. The bolster of  claim 1 , wherein the polymer composite material comprises glass mat polymer. 
     
     
       12. The bolster of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor mount portion is a first sensor mount portion, wherein the body further comprises a second sensor mount portion connected to the first and fourth members of the bolster, wherein a second sensor is mounted on the second sensor mount portion, and wherein the second sensor mount portion is fabricated from a polymer composite material and a flexible reinforcement material over-molded onto the polymer composite material. 
     
     
       13. The bolster of  claim 1 , wherein the body further comprises a cross member connected between the third and fourth members of the bolster, and wherein a portion of the cross member or the entire cross member includes a flexible reinforcement material over-molded onto a polymer composite material. 
     
     
       14. A method, comprising:
 forming, using a mold, a structural or semi-structural component for a vehicle from a polymer composite material comprising a glass mat thermoplastic which includes a chopped fiber glass mat reinforced polypropylene laminate with randomly oriented glass fibers, the component comprising a first member; 
 positioning a flexible reinforcement material within the mold; and 
 over-molding the flexible reinforcement material onto the first member only at one or more localized positions on the first member, and not on the entire first member, to form one or more sensor mount portions at the one or more localized positions. 
 
     
     
       15. The method of  claim 14 , wherein the one or more sensor mount portions do not include a monolithic metal plate. 
     
     
       16. The method of  claim 14 , wherein the flexible reinforcement material is a material selected from the group consisting of a woven, continuous glass fiber substrate; a continuous glass fiber within a polypropylene substrate; a woven, comingled glass and polypropylene fabric; continuous high-strength steel strands; a woven, continuous polypropylene and fiberglass substrate; and any combination thereof. 
     
     
       17. The method of  claim 14 , wherein the flexible reinforcement material comprises a plurality of individual, unidirectional continuous high-strength strands attached to a flexible substrate. 
     
     
       18. A method for a vehicle structural or semi-structural component assembly, the method comprising:
 forming, using a mold, a structural or semi-structural component for a vehicle from a polymer composite material, the component comprising a first member, a second member opposed from the first member, a third member positioned between and at one end of the first and second members, a fourth member opposed from the third member and positioned between and at an end of the first and second members opposite the third member, and a cross member connected between the third and fourth members; 
 over-molding a flexible reinforcement material onto the polymer composite material at one or more locations within the mold to form one or more locations along the cross member; and 
 directly attaching a sensor to the flexible reinforcement material at at least one of the one or more locations along the cross member. 
 
     
     
       19. The method of  claim 18 , wherein the one or more locations along the cross member comprising the flexible reinforcement material comprise a Maximum G-Load spread from about 1 G's to about 100 G's. 
     
     
       20. The method of  claim 18 , wherein the flexible reinforcement material is over-molded onto the entire cross member such that the entire cross member is a sensor mount, and wherein the sensor mount does not include a monolithic metal plate. 
     
     
       21. The method of  claim 18 , wherein the flexible reinforcement material is a material selected from the group consisting of a woven, continuous glass fiber substrate; a continuous glass fiber within a polypropylene substrate; a woven, comingled glass and polypropylene fabric; continuous high-strength steel strands; a woven, continuous polypropylene and fiberglass substrate; and any combination thereof. 
     
     
       22. A method of retrofitting a vehicle structural or semi-structural component assembly, the method comprising:
 removing an existing metal sensor mount from an existing vehicle structural or semi-structural component; 
 replacing the existing metal sensor mount with a new sensor mount comprising a glass mat thermoplastic having a flexible reinforcement material over-molded therein, the glass mat thermoplastic including a chopped fiber glass mat reinforced polypropylene laminate with randomly oriented glass fibers; and 
 mounting a crash sensor on the new sensor mount. 
 
     
     
       23. The method of  claim 22 , wherein the new sensor mount does not include a monolithic metal plate, and wherein the crash sensor comprises one or more of an accelerometer, a pressure transducer, a thermocouple, a load cell, a deflection sensor, and a contact sensor.